2-seat Majority To Challenge House Speaker

Diverse Democrats Await Madigan

November 11, 1996|By Rick Pearson, Tribune Staff Writer.

SPRINGFIELD — When Republican George Ryan presided over the Illinois House with a slim majority, he asked free-lancing Democrat Al Ronan to secure the vote of an African-American lawmaker from Chicago on an issue that was key to the GOP.

But when it came time for the critical vote--to redraw the state's legislative boundaries so future elections would tilt the General Assembly toward the Republican Party--the legislator wouldn't vote Ryan's way.

"I never gave you my word," Rep. Jesse Jackson (R-Chicago) told Ryan on the remap vote. "Al Ronan gave you my word."

Ronan, now a prosperous consultant, and Jackson--no relation to the famous reverend--are far removed from their seats in the legislature. Ryan is now Illinois' secretary of state.

But the incident 15 years ago is a reminder that no matter which party claims control of a razor-thin majority in the legislature, there are no guarantees that anything will go according to the plans of legislative leaders.

That's the challenge facing Rep. Michael Madigan (D-Chicago) as he prepares to assume the speakership of a 60-58 Democratic majority in the Illinois House.

While Republican Senate President James "Pate" Philip of Wood Dale also will carry a two-vote edge in maintaining his majority, the GOP caucus in the Senate is more homogeneous than the Democratic caucus that awaits Madigan in the House.

Madigan has been speaker before, from 1983 to 1995, before Republicans assumed their short-lived control over the chamber. But Madigan's previous majorities have been huge compared with what he will have when the new legislature convenes in January.

And while Democrats pride themselves on the diversity of their representation, it is the diversity itself that could be the presumptive speaker's biggest headache.

Within the 60-member Democratic caucus are subgroups of lawmakers with various constituencies and backgrounds: the Hispanic caucus, the African-American caucus, the Downstate caucus, the New Democrat caucus and others. There also are Democratic members of the bipartisan women's caucus and the bipartisan sportsman's caucus of hunters and outdoorsmen.

"In years past, when Mike Madigan was speaker, we also had a diverse caucus," Rep. Louis Lang (D-Skokie) said. "But when all you have is 60, you may have the majority, but you have to work as a team and form coalitions, and Madigan is a bridge builder."

Often, however, it is the minority party that reaches across the partisan divide. It was Republicans, serving as the minority party in the General Assembly, who aligned with unhappy black Democrats in 1990 to create Cook County's system of elected judicial subcircuits, breaking up organization Democrats' hold over judgeships.

And when Democrat Philip Rock of Oak Park served as Senate president with a two-seat majority from 1985 to 1991, on any given day he faced problems whenever a pair of legislators would get together on an idea. Two members of his caucus even held up passage of a redistricting map that favored Democrats because some Downstate districts weren't drawn to help their Republican friends.

Under the new House setup, it is virtually assured that minority Republicans will seek out alliances from Democrats who chafe under Madigan's leadership. And it is likely that Downstate lawmakers from each party will band together on some issues when they believe that they are being overlooked by Chicagoan Madigan or Rep. Lee Daniels of Elmhurst, the presumptive GOP House leader.

Madigan, however, said he doesn't expect many defections from his members, given the way Republicans muffled Democrats when the GOP led the House.

"They've suffered for two years. They clearly know who the real enemy is," Madigan said of his Democrats.

He acknowledged that his new situation is much different from when he presided over a House with a huge Democratic majority.

"I was the majority leader at one time when you needed 89 votes to pass a bill, and we had 89 Democratic votes," he said, referring to the days before an amendment to the Illinois Constitution reduced the General Assembly's size. "It's a harder situation. But if you manage well and you work with your people, you'll find that you'll get your wishes rather nicely."

Of course, knowing how to cut a deal doesn't hurt.

Back in 1981, when Ryan didn't get Jackson's vote for the Republican remap, Jackson's decision ultimately helped Madigan and Democrats win control of the House.

Jackson didn't return to the Madigan-run chamber the following year. But thanks to the new Democratic speaker, he still holds the $41,000-a-year job he got in 1983 in the Chicago Health Department.